Hanoi has proposed Beijing strengthen substantive cooperation to make it the foundation for the development of Vietnam and China.

General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) Nguyen Phu Trong at the phone talk with China’s President Xi Jinping on Sept 24. Photo: VNA

General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) Nguyen Phu Trong made the statement in a phone talk with the General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and China’s President Xi Jinping today [Sept 24].

He suggested the two sides continue to strictly honor the reached agreements and implement the agreements on free trade and border economy, in which China will continue creating favorable conditions for more balanced trade, and import of Vietnam’s agricultural products.

He said China should increase investment in big projects and solve problems in its existing projects in Vietnam.

The two sides need to closely coordinate on border management, strictly comply with legal documents governing border demarcation for peace, stability, cooperation, and development.

Trong went on to say that both countries need to improve the effectiveness of maritime cooperation, promote negotiations on delimitation and proper handling of maritime issues, as well as coordinate with ASEAN to ensure the efficiency of the negotiations of the Code of Conduct for the South China Sea (COC) that should be in line with international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

In his turn, Xi affirmed that China attached much importance to the longstanding relations with Vietnam to boost the comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership in the process of building socialism. He agreed to strengthen high-level exchanges and substantive cooperation in various fields, enhance bilateral coordination at multilateral forums, and properly handle maritime issues.

According to Xi, in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic, the two sides need to maintain regular exchanges and contact at all levels, sectors, and localities through flexible forms, speeding up strategic connections, forming new highlights in cooperation between the two countries.